US coach enouraged athlete to use underweight shot to PB ?

[paulthomas]

Todays headline news - 17th Feb - has a direct link to an article about Dawn Dumble - in a direct quote from Dawn- she confirms that a US coach offered her the use of a lightweight shot -so she could reach the Olympic qualifying mark.
How often does this form of cheating happen ?
At every major meet - so many athletes are so far away from their best performance of the year - that you wonder how they ever managed to qualify.
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Dawn to her eternal credit -refused to cheat -- but the US coach lacked basic integrity- why are they part of the sport. .

[guru]

Don't all meets at that level weigh implements? Heck, most HIGH SCHOOL meets do it. Good for her, but I find it hard to believe she could have slipped it through anyway.

[gh]

Friendly coaches/officials have been helping athletes to get Q-standard marks forever, at all levels of competition.

[26mi235]

Just the other day the star frosh SP was denied a class record because the implement was 1g light--not everyone is in to bending the rules.

[catson52]

Friendly coaches/officials have been helping athletes to get Q-standard marks forever, at all levels of competition.

When Gunder Haag was starting out, running in the forests of Sweden, his father shaved some 30 seconds of some of his runs to encourage him to continue. Depends at what level this "shaving" is done, and what one does afterwards. Certainly no place for it to qualify for local/national etc. meets.